BYU football: Bronco Mendenhall got his strong work ethic from time at Oregon State

For a long stretch, Oregon State football was synonymous with futility. From 1971-1998, the Beavers suffered 28 consecutive losing seasons, which is an NCAA record. They were known as "The Bad News Beavs." During Mendenhall's combined six years at OSU, his teams won a grand total of 13 games.

"Everything was difficult. That, in and of itself, established a work ethic and an appreciation for just the nature of how difficult winning football games is," Mendenhall has said.

Riley helped bring Oregon State to national respectability, including six bowl appearances since 2003. The Beavers' only loss in those bowl games came at the hands of BYU.

"It wasn't a time when Oregon State football was very strong when I was there," Mendenhall said. "As a coach, it was a very difficult place to win. Not a lot of success stories — a lot of work and a lot of friendships that I still remember."

During his seven seasons at BYU, Mendenhall has guided the Cougars to a 60-23 record. Lessons he learned during some trying times in Corvallis remain with him today.

"I learned how important it was to have just a strong work ethic and how difficult it is to win football games," he said. "They should be valued and treasured when you are able to have success."

Cougars on the air

BYU (4-2) at Oregon State (1-4)

Saturday, 2 p.m. MT

Reser Stadium, Corvallis, Ore.

TV: KBYU, Fox College Sports Pacific

Radio: 1160 AM, 102.7 FM

Email: jeffc@desnews.com